Sinkhole closes Cole Grade Road in Valley Center

VALLEY CENTER -- A large sinkhole caused by a broken water main
collapsed part of Cole Grade Road in Valley Center Saturday night,
closing the road until about 9 a.m. Sunday, authorities said.

The water main break was reported around 5:30 p.m., and
subsequent flooding created a roughly 30- by 40-foot sinkhole that
spanned the width of Cole Grade between Fruitvale Road and Via
Valencia, Valley Center fire engineer Jose Galeano said.

"So it was a pretty big hole," Galeano said, adding that at
about six feet deep, "a man could stand in it."

Authorities believe the flooding was caused by the rupture of a
14- to 15-inch pipe running parallel under the road.

Water from the broken main flowed downhill into Horse Creek, and
firefighters had not been alerted to any injuries or damage to
structures by Sunday evening, though some chicken coops flooded at
a nearby ranch, Galeano said.

Crews from the Valley Center Municipal Water District worked
overnight to repair the road.

A representative from the water district could not be reached
for comment Sunday night.

The sinkhole is the second reported in North County this month.
A 30-inch gap that widened underground into an eight-feet-deep,
30-feet-wide hole shut down La Costa Avenue in Carlsbad on Aug. 4,
reportedly costing the city almost $6,000 in repairs.